Home Appointments Sheriff
Sheriff
Charleston County Sheriff's Office, South Carolina
| Appointee | Kristin Graziano |
|---|---|
| Role | Sheriff |
| Organisation | Charleston County Sheriff's Office, South Carolina |
| Domain | Law Enforcement |
| Start | 1 January 2021 |
| End | 6 January 2025 |
| Notes | First woman elected sheriff in South Carolina history; defeated 32-year incumbent Al Cannon |
Kristin Graziano was elected sheriff of Charleston County, South Carolina in November 2020 and took office in January 2021, becoming the first woman elected sheriff in the history of South Carolina. She defeated incumbent Al Cannon, who had held the office for 32 years, in the Democratic primary — one of the largest competitive-election margins recorded in the dataset's sheriff entries against a sitting officeholder. She is also the first openly LGBT sheriff elected in South Carolina.
Graziano had served eighteen years as a Charleston County deputy under Cannon prior to her run. She served one four-year term, leaving office in January 2025.
The pre-Graziano South Carolina record contains widow-succession examples (e.g. Mae Gasque, Marion County, 1935, appointed after her husband died in office). The dataset records those as historical context within this dossier rather than as separate entries, in line with the law-enforcement domain's editorial rule.
